Clint Black Honored as BMI Icon at Star-Studded 2025 BMI Country Awards

The 2025 BMI Country Awards, held Nov. 18 at BMI's Nashville office, celebrated the year's 50 most-performed country songs while honoring standout writers, publishers, and artists. Clint Black received the BMI Icon Award, recognizing a career that includes 22 No. 1 singles as a writer or co-writer and more than 20 million albums sold since joining BMI in 1993.

Post Malone and Morgan Wallen earned BMI Country Song of the Year for "I Had Some Help." The hit, written by ERNEST, Charlie Handsome, and additional collaborators, is published by Big Loud Mountain, Sony/ATV, and Warner-Tamerlane. Charlie Handsome was named BMI Country Songwriter of the Year for co-writing multiple chart-topping songs. Warner-Tamerlane Publishing claimed Publisher of the Year. Accepting the award, Handsome told the crowd, “This is probably the first time a rap/hip-hop producer won songwriter of the year in country.”

The event was important for new creators, honoring 38 awards from BMI to first-time winners. The Top 50 list reflected the year's diverse voices, with Morgan Wallen and Jelly Roll each securing four entries and artists such as Zach Bryan and Cody Johnson earning multiple placements.

The night also served as an extended tribute to Clint Black. Performances by Midland, Jamey Johnson, Wynonna Judd, Randy Houser, Riley Green, and others highlighted classics, including Better Man and A Bad Goodbye. Video tributes from major country stars added to the celebration. Black attended with his wife, Lisa Hartman Black, and their daughter, Lily Pearl Black.

During his remarks, Black reflected on studying music from a young age and the encouragement that shaped his career, saying, “He taught me how to read the liner notes. He'd say, ‘There's the artist, there's the songwriter, there's the producer…' He said, ‘It's usually Billy Sherrill, if it's good.' From that point on, I wanted to be a songwriter. Being up here, standing up here, I can tell you, it's the best job. I'm so grateful. To all of you who sang my songs to me tonight, it was a real treat and a real honor… I'm in such great company here tonight.”

Black also added, “You don't do what we do without a long train of people behind you, pushing you up the hill. There have been a lot of people in my life who are as much responsible for this moment as I am…Seeing how many of my friends and fellow artists pitched in to make this special is truly humbling. It's unexpected, and that makes it twice as good.”